They manufacture trucks? Automotive brands you wouldn’t expect making trucks

MANConstellation

The global automotive industry is a much more complex and diverse ecosystem than it may seem at first glance, especially from a Eurocentric perspective. Volvo, Scania, DAF, Mercedes-Benz, MAN –we will probably think of these manufacturers when someone asks about truck manufacturers present on the European market. Meanwhile, there are other brands in the world (also of European origin) that also offer trucks and tractor units. Bah! They are even sales leaders in this segment. But not in Europe. Today we will look at several manufacturers that you may not have known produce trucks, although you are probably very familiar with their passenger models.

Volkswagen

Volkswagen all over the world (and especially in Europe) is associated primarily with passenger cars, especially such popular models as Golf and Passat. Of course, the brand has also been present on the delivery vehicle market almost from the very beginning of its existence thanks to the Transporter delivery van. But trucks with the VW logo on the hood are probably a mistake, right? Nothing could be further from the truth, you just need to go to the Amazon River.

The brand from Wolfsburg, Germany, has been present in Brazil since 1953, when local production of the iconic Beetle (called Fusca there) began. In the following decades, the Brazilian branch of VW released successful models designed with the specificity of the local market in mind (Brasilia, Gol). With the development of production, it was time to expand the range to include buses and trucks.

In 1981, Volkswagen bought Chrysler’s Brazilian truck business and introduced the first models with its own logo to the market. Technically, they were based on solutions developed by Chrysler, but received new cabs (modified cabins of the European VW LT van).

We speed up the next decades and now Volkswagen Truck &Bus Indústria e Comércio de Veículos Ltda is one of the leading truck manufacturers in Brazil. The brand now belongs to Traton –a group fully controlled by VAG, which also includes MAN, Scania and Navistar.

Since 2005, the brand’s most important product in Brazil has remained the Constellation, offered as a tractor unit and a chassis with a cabin for specialized superstructures. Interestingly, Constellation was also successful in sports, because Formula Truck, i.e. track-based tractor-trailer racing, is popular in Brazil.

Four years ago, the role of the brand’s flagship tractor was taken over by Meteor, a modified first-generation MAN TGX. VW’s offer in Brazil is complemented by Delivery –a city truck with a load capacity of 3.5 to 9 tons, which debuted in 2003 and 14 years later saw its second generation.

Bob Adams, CC BY-SA 2.0

Volkswagen Constellation 19.320 Titan (Author: Bob Adams, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikipedia)

Is there a chance to see the Volkswagen Constellation or Meteor on European routes? Very little, unless some carrier company decides to import individually from Brazil. The Volkswagen Group has no reason to introduce Brazilian trucks to the European market, because its portfolio includes a German brand with a solid position on the Old Continent market: MAN.

Ford

While you won’t see VW trucks from Brazil on European roads, tractor units with a blue oval on the cab are already starting to appear there. Of course, in Europe, Ford –like Volkswagen –is almost exclusively associated with passenger models and the favorite of couriers, plumbers and other small businesses, the Transit delivery van.

In the United States, Ford today means SUVs, the iconic Mustang and –perhaps above all –a wide range of pickup trucks (and the Transit, of course). However, until the end of the 1990s, Ford also offered trucks and tractor units in the USA.

Also on the Old Continent, Ford was present on the truck market, but models produced by the German (FK) and British (Thames) branches of Ford won customers only in their home markets. In 1975, Ford tried to win the hearts of European carriers. An ambitious attempt, but doomed to failure. The Transcontinental model (built from parts entirely supplied by external suppliers, e.g. the cabins were manufactured by the French Berliet) was ahead of its time, offering technical advancement and a level of comfort unavailable from competitors, so it gained recognition among drivers. However, only just over 8,200 units were produced by 1983 (making it a sought-after classic among commercial vehicle collectors today). The reason for the failure was the too high price and too much weight, especially in the light of the British regulations at that time.

The Cargo box model, which went into production in 1981, was slightly more popular (you are probably more familiar with its modified version sold under the Italian brand Iveco EuroCargo). However, it will not be untrue to say that Ford has been absent from the truck market in Europe since the 1990s. Something different in Turkey.

Ford Otosan –a joint business of Ford and the Turkish holding company Koç, founded in 1959 –has been successfully producing trucks on the Bosphorus for years.

In 2018, a new tractor unit called F-Max was introduced to the market, and a year later it won the Truck of the Year title. Ford plans to expand the F-Max market in Europe and challenge manufacturers with established positions and image. Currently, the Turkish tractor unit is sold on several European markets (including Germany, France, Poland and Spain), although it is still a rare sight on the road.

Alexandre Prevot, CC BY-SA 2.0

Ford F-Max (Author: Alexandre Prevot, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikipedia)

Tata

Tata Motors, part of the Tata Group, is one of the largest automotive manufacturers in India. In Europe, however, this brand is almost completely unknown, although a dozen or so years ago it tried to enter the Old Continent market thanks to the Indica city model. This does not mean, however, that it is completely absent from Europe. Tata Motors owns two famous British brands: Jaguar and Land Rover. Tata also has two research and development centers in Europe.

However, you are unlikely to see trucks with the Indian manufacturer’s logo on European roads, and if you do, they will be very rare. Meanwhile, in its native India, Tata offers a truly wide range of trucks, including tractor units from the Sigma and Prima lines. They are also exported to numerous markets in developing countries.

Enthusiast10, CC BY-SA 3.0

Tata Prima (Author: Enthusiast10, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikipedia)

DAF

Finally, a look at the topic of our article, but à rebours. How about a manufacturer that specializes only in trucks, is widely associated with them, but also has an episode in the passenger car market?

Today, the Dutch DAF, part of the global PACCAR concern, focuses exclusively on the production of trucks, but in the years 1958-1975 it offered a family of small city cars. It started with the 600 model and ended with the 66. DAF passenger cars were two-door, four-seater sedans (estate, van and pick-up versions were also offered), powered by petrol engines with capacities ranging from 0.6 to 1.3 liters. What distinguished DAF cars (apart from the body style of models from 44 onwards, designed by the legendary Giovanni Michelotti) was the use of a Variomatic continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) –for the first time in the history of the automotive industry.

In 1975, Volvo took over the DAF passenger division and for a short time the DAF 66 model was sold as the Volvo 66. Today, it seems that the DAF passenger car is just a footnote in the history of the automotive industry, remembered only for its revolutionary CVT transmission. Meanwhile, between 1958 and 1975, over 800,000 passenger DAFs were produced in the factories in Eindhoven and Born. Not such a footnote after all.

Thumbnail photo: MAN SE, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikipedia